Justices Debate SEC Bid To Expand Window For Fraud Suits

Law360, New York (January 8, 2013, 6:31 PM EST) -- The U.S. Supreme Court appeared reluctant Tuesday to expand the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s five-year window to seek civil fraud penalties, grilling an SEC attorney on why the agency had never made such a request before suing two Gabelli Funds LLC executives.

Jeffrey B. Wall, an attorney for the government, faced intense questioning during oral arguments in Gabelli v. SEC, a 2008 case focusing on the agency's time limit for filing civil enforcement actions that seek penalties. The SEC argues that the clock begins to...